A Change of Face
by CaptainKBX
Summary: A teenage inventor builds a device which takes him into the world of his favorite video-game character, Sonic the Hedgehog
1. Chapter 1

A Change of Face by CaptainKBX The sun had just risen. Conner immediately awoke and picked up work on his Dimensional Portal. The dimensional portal was quite an odd idea, which was actually inspired by a joke.

About half an hour after he woke up, his Dad walked into the shed where Conner was working. "You're actually working on that thing?!" his dad half-asked, half-exclaimed. "Yeah," replied Conner, "Why not? It's a good idea!" "Well," said Dad, "Mister 'Good Idea', it was a joke! You can't seriously travel to other dimensions!" "Oh, yeah," replied Conner, "Just watch me!"

His dad left the shed, and Conner continued work on his Portal. Soon he was finished, but the time was 7:59 AM and his School Bus arrived at Eight O'clock. The Portal was ready to go, but he wondered if he should go to school or try the machine afterwards.

Conner sighed. He wasn't going to school. He hit the big red button on the side of the machine and then everything flashed.

Conner had found himself in a strange place where he was rolled up into a ball and bouncing off assorted things. He bounced into a sort of crystal and suddenly blacked out.

When he awoke, he found himself in a place that looked familiar. "Hey," Conner said to himself, "This is Green Hill Zone from Sonic the Hedgehog!" He then fainted. He woke up soon, and looked at himself. "I'm a freak," he said, "I'm like Sonic, but Red!" "Well," he concluded, "I guess I'd better practice some skills."

Conner practiced for a while on some outdated robots which he found. He found many rings, but hadn't had much use for them. He wondered if he'd need them up ahead, however, so he kept them. He discovered a marooned robot named Grinder. He befriended Grinder, but soon the robot clubbed him upside the head, knocking him unconscious.

As Conner "slept", he dreamt he met a girl hedgehog. "Hi," she said, "I'm Amy! What's your name?" Uncontrollably, Conner replied, "Duke." Just as he said that, he was waken by a Cat. "Hey," said the cat, You all right? Welcome to South Island. What's your name?" Conner replied, "Neo?" Puzzled, the cat asked, "Neo is your name? I thought I heard that somewhere..." Immediately, Conner said, "No, no, no. My name isn't Neo, it's...Duke." Satisfied, the cat told him, "Hey, Duke! I'm Big! Do you wanna fish with me?"

Big and Duke explored for a while. Soon they met a group. "Hey, Duke," said Big "Here's somma my friends! Ren, Liz, Sykes, and Hermie!" "Hey Everyone!" Duke replied. Just then, out of the bushes came a small robot. Immediately, the group destroyed it. The sun was setting. Suddenly, Duke noticed a blue hedgehog. Sonic? he thought. "SONIC!" he screamed. "That ain't Sonic," Hermie told him, "That's a girl first off." Duke ran to her and greeted her. "Hey, I'm Brandie, but call me Spaz," she told him. "I'm Duke...err...well...Conner but I like the name Duke. They joined up with the group and began their trip to Angel Island.

After getting onto West Side Island; Duke and Spaz left the rest of the group. Walking into a cave, Spaz exclaimed, "Duke! There's something bad in here!" _Hmph,_ Duke thought, _Nuthin' bad in here, least nuthin' I can't handle._ The two 'hogs noticed green lights on the ceiling and a robotic dinosaur on a platform. Duke's unconventional way of taking out the 'badniks" worked very efficiently. The pair soon discovered a teleport.

After going through the teleport, the two find themselves smack dab on top of the Master Emerald. Suddenly, Knuckles the Echidna came in. "What are you doing?!" he asked. Before Duke could reply, the Echidna hit both him and Spaz unconscious.

Duke had awakened in a hospital bed. He was human again. "Wha-Where am I?" he asked. His mom was there. "Well," she said," Conner, honey, you're in the hospital!" "Hospital?!" he asked. Hmm he thought, I could be hallucinating, but I could also not be, wait, how much sense does that make? "Well," said his mom, "How do ya feel?" "I-I'm okay," he replied, "But-" He was interrupted by none other than the infamous Doctor Robotnik, who had entered the room. "It was all a dream!" said the doctor. "What? You think I'd believe that? Of course it wasn't a dream, you moron!" Conner laughed. Conner wasn't persuaded so easily, well, sometimes he was, but not this time. "So," replied the doctor, You want it that way, huh? You have something of mine, now give it to me!"

Everything vanished with a puff, and suddenly Conner could see that he was in Robotnik's base. _Hmm this one's new._ Conner thought, _I guess that was a dream..._ He was now Duke again. Robotnik had sent legions of "badniks" against Duke, but they were all destroyed by Duke's skill. He'd soon run off. Great, Now I have to get back to Angel Island AND Find Spaz. He thought.

Spaz had found herself in Westopolis. It was a wasteland. The town was covered in litter and debris. She shuddered. There was no sign of life, albeit the patches of grass sticking up through cracks in the pavement. Before she could go further, another portal engulfed her.

She found herself aboard the Space Colony ARK. She'd heard rumors of a black hedgehog here. "Hmm..." she said to herself, "Looks abandoned." She was so lonely, she felt like talking to herself. Out of nowhere came none other than Shadow the hedgehog. I, uh, need some help. My friend and I got lost and somehow I found myself here." she told him. "Well," said Shadow, "It's quite an occasion when I have company, so, okay. Where were you at?" "Angel Island, I believe!" said Spaz.

Duke was again caught. He was put in a cage. "Doc," he said, "Lemme out and I can give you some useful technology." "Okay," the Doctor said, "But you must work for me from now on." Duke hadn't realized what he was doing; it was basically a ticket into his hometown. Doctor Eggman released him and Duke gave him several different teleportation techniques and weapons.

Spaz and Shadow used Chaos Control to get to Angel Island. "Knuckles," Shadow asked, "Have you seen a red hedgehog?" "Oh yeah," Knuckles frowned, "Him and that bugger were trying to steal the Master Emerald!" Before anyone could say anything, several Shadow androids appeared out of nowhere. One grabbed Shadow, and another, Knuckles. They disappeared. Spaz had managed to run, but eventually, the robot caught up to her. She was on a ledge, and below her was a 50 foot drop into the ocean. The robot had been programmed to either kill or capture its targets. Because it could not catch Spaz, it'd pushed her into the sea.

Duke approached Knuckles and Shadow, who were now caged. "You," Knuckles exclaimed, "You're behind this?!" Ignoring him, Duke asked Shadow, "Where is Spaz?" The black hedgehog appeared saddened, then looked up, "The way I see it, either she got away or is...dead." A teardrop fell from Duke's cheek. "She can't die," he whispered, "I loved her..."

Doctor Eggman sent Duke to find the remaining "meddlers", who were Sonic and his friends, along with Duke's original group. He complied, but instead of going straight to Sonic, he went for Spaz. He soon left for Sonic when he couldn't find Spaz.

Sonic and Tails were wandering West Side Island when they ran into Big, Hermie, Liz, and Sykes. They chatted for a bit, but as Sonic and Tails were leaving, Duke, along with several Shadow androids, captured them. Duke went for more "meddlers." Then he found Cream and her mother, Vanilla.

Duke explained to Vanilla his plan. He wasn't going to let Eggman get what he wanted. He took the rabbits to Eggman's base, but when he got there, he opened the cages and then Sonic and friends escaped. After they escaped, Duke took the gem he had obtained earlier and screamed, "Chaos Blast!" Eggman's entire base exploded.

Spaz had been sitting in the water for a while now. She couldn't swim. She stuck her hand into her bag and grabbed a gem. Energy flowed through her body, and she was practically reborn. Her Blue fur turned ivory, and the yellow spots turned red. She could now swim, and her swimming skill was unsurpassed. Hmm she thought, I can sure swim great, but how am I gonna get back up there?

Duke again awoke as Conner, but this time, he was lying in his shed. He looked to his watch, and it was 9:30 AM.

Conner sat up, but his head was "killing him". I can't go in... he thought, what happened? I must be hallucinating. He decided to open his Dimensional Portal device and found a loose part. "Of course!" he exclaimed. He repaired it and again woke up as Duke, in the Sonic World.

As he woke up, he found Spaz hugging him. "Let's go, Spaz, we gotta go get something." he said.

Duke and Spaz then looked for Shadow and Sonic, who could help them get what they were after. Spaz didn't know, but Duke had seen something while between worlds.

"Spaz," Duke said, "I've gotta go for a while, take everyone to the Master Emerald." "Right," Spaz replied. Duke then took a running jump off of Angel Island, and yelled, "CHAOS CONTROL!" He then disappeared.

Shadow had seen the smoke rising from the base. "Hmm..." he said, "He sacrificed himself for us, but I believe it was in vain." "Whaddya mean, Shadow?" asked Sonic. "I mean," answered Shadow, "Eggman's still out there."

Eggman was in his new aircraft, based on an American B-2 Spirit Bomber, called the "Egg Glider." He had a whole laboratory in there, and had samples of Shadow's, Sonic's, and Duke's DNA, and was working on combining them, though he felt it was incomplete.

Another hedgehog, Silver, came to Angel Island. Eggman sent some Shadow androids, as well as a Duke android to attack him. Silver used his Telekinetic powers to push away the robots and ran away. Oddly, the androids didn't chase him, because they were after his DNA.

Eggman began his so-called, "Project Neo Shadow", but thought the name was dumb, so named it, "Project Zenith". It involved cloning the four hedgehogs (Duke, Shadow, Silver, and Sonic). Eggman had a problem, however. He didn't exactly know how to do such things. He went to the ARK to find his grandfather's technology. Hopefully, there was something left over from Project Shadow.

Duke arrived in GUN Headquarters. He tried to get their help, but they wouldn't listen, so Duke stole some weapons and holsters. He holstered the guns and again yelled, "CHAOS CONTROL!"

Spaz had collected Shadow, Amy, Tails, and Cream. Noticing a hedgehog shape, they approached, thinking it was Sonic. The "badnik" flipped around and grabbed Cream.  
Sonic had seen Cream being taken. He jumped, bounced off of a tree, and smashed the robot. Vanilla, Cream's mother, thanked him.

Eggman soon had his project halfway done. He found himself not only making an evil "original" hedgehog, but Metal versions of Sonic (Neo Metal Sonic), Duke (Stronger than an Android), Shadow (same as Duke), and Silver.

"Dammit," growled Conner's dad, "Left my keys in the shed!" He was leaving for work. He went into the shed and noticed the Dimensional Portal powered on. He touched it and disappeared in a flash.

Meanwhile, Eggman met a blood red hedgehog, similar to Duke. "Adrian," he said, "You need to help me fight the meddlers." "Yes... But I need something in return," Adrian replied.

Conner reappeared in his bedroom. He removed his belt and put it under his bed. He decided to go to school. "Hmm..." he said, 9:45, Dad should be leaving now." He walked out into the living room. "Hey, Mom," he called out, "Dad leave?" "Conner, where have you been?!" she asked. "Sleeping," he answered, "Finished my invention." "Good for you," she replied, "Now dad went to get his keys, he said they were in the shed." "'Kay then," Conner told his Mother, "I'll walk to school."

Conner's dad, Jim, woke up on Angel Island. He was a good hunter, and good at navigating. He found his way to the Master Emerald in no time flat! Spaz noticed him first. "Who are you?" she asked. "I am James Smith, father of Conner Smith, have you seen him? By the way, who are you, and...what are you?" "My name is Brandie, and I'm a Hedgehog. Can you call me Spaz, though?"

Conner ran down the street. "If I can change, now'd be a good time!" With a flash, he became Duke. He arrived at school grounds and changed back. He looked to his watch, and then comically strolled into the office.

"Y'know," Jim told Knuckles as they sat by the Master emerald, "There're plenty Echidnas where I'm from." Shocked, Knuckles replied, "Wha...What? That's impossible!" "Well, they ain't like you... They are... small. Nowhere near your size! They're...pet...size."

Conner got to his classroom, but as he arrived, the Lunch bell rang. He proceeded to lunch, planning on using his computer most of the time.

At Lunch, Conner sat with his friends Marissa, Billy, Cassidy, and Wolfy. Conner opened his gleaming crimson laptop, and it reminded him of Knuckles. Hmm he thought, Knuckles, the Guardian of the Master emerald. He and Shadow Damn, I wanted to tell Shadow Conner, Marissa said, You look like you wanna say something. Yeah, Conner replied, Just come to my house after school.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Tails were flying above Angel Island in the Tornado II. They noticed the Egg Glider approaching, as well as the portal on the ground. They landed and warned everyone.

Back at school, the dismissal bell rang, and just as it did, Conner ran home. He went to his room, observing his posters of Jun Senoue and Yuji Naka, as well as Sonic the Hedgehog. He opened his backpack and pulled out his laptop and opened his e-mail. He then emailed Naka and Senoue, hoping they'd believe him. He then looked across to his poster of Johnny Gioeli, whispering Open your heart, it's gonna be alright! He wished he could tell Gioeli, but sadly, had no contact with him. He thought for a moment. Hey, wait, I know! he said.

Far away, near San Francisco, California, Crush 40 (Jun and Johnny) were performing Live and Learn at a concert. After they finished, Jun checked his E-mail. Look at this, he told Johnny, Some kid says he's got something urgent for me. Looking over Jun's shoulder, Johnny asked, What's it about? Is it spam? Or could it truly be important? I dunno, Johnny, he wants us to come to his house with Yuji Naka. He says Sonic's real. Jun said. Sounds like a scam, but what if it's true? Johnny asked. He says something about a Dimensional Portal', Jun stated, Could it be possible that he found a way to enter video games? I hope so, cause I'd love to take the Tornado for a spin! Johnny laughed.

After e-mailing, Conner closed his laptop and went to the shed. The portal device was on. Damn, he said, Dad. He then went through and asked Shadow to come back with him, not noticing the Egg Glider.

He brought Shadow back to his home, and Shadow noticed the poster of Sonic. What is this? he asked. Well, Conner replied (as Duke), You see, Shadow, I'm from another world one where you and Sonic and everyone are just characters in a video game. With that, he changed back to Conner and turned on his Sega Genesis. Slightly chuckling as it sang Se-ga. He then hummed to the tune of the very first Sonic the Hedgehog video game. Shadow's eyes widened. You-You can transform into a hedgehog?! Shadow asked, quite shocked. Yeah, but just look Conner replied. Watching for a moment, Shadow half-asked, half-screamed, You mean my existence is pointless? I exist for someone's entertainment?! Not exactly, Conner sighed, In this world you may, but in yours you're very real. You see, I have a theory; I call it the box' theory. It simply- Shadow interrupted him, Enough. I need to get back to my dimension or whatever. Conner realized something as Shadow began to leave. I may be able to bring Maria back. Shadow stopped for a few seconds. Yeah, here, but not in my dimension. No, in yours. It's called the Quantum theory; when anyone has a choice, multiple realities are created. What the people do or say changes what reality they consciously go through. The guy that shot Maria had a choice to defy orders or do it. In a game, which no-one in your reality remembers, as they had to go back in time and prevent it from happening, you and Sonic discovered that if two people use Chaos control in close proximity, then it makes a wormhole similar to how you got here. We could potentially use one to get Maria here. It won't affect the time/space continuum because it should create an alternate reality while we remain in ours. Our only problem is the possibility of a paradox with two Shadows in the same reality. I believe another hedgehog – Silver - and I should do it.

Jim had already lead Knuckles to the portal and they arrived at Jim's house just as Conner and Shadow were talking. Just as they were approaching the house, Conner and Shadow used Chaos control to get to California, just outside of the place where Crush 40 was having their concert. Conner walked in, and as he did, Johnny noticed him. Sorry, kid, Johnny said, Concert's over. I'm not here for the concert I sent that e-mail to Jun. Sonic's real. I know because of this; Said Conner as he raised his arm, showing Johnny a Chaos Emerald. Nice gem, dude, Musta cost a fortune! It's a Chaos emerald. Don't believe me? Shadow's outside. Yeah, right. I'm a Sonic fan, too, but I don't get insane like that. Just as Johnny said that, Shadow walked in. Conner, what's taking so long? he asked. Johnny almost fainted as he saw Shadow. Jun! Jun! C'mere! It's that kid who e-mailed you! And Shadow's with him!

Meanwhile, Eggman had prepared Zenith for a test run. Eggman landed the Egg Glider atop a cliff. Zenith went out and grabbed Amy. She attempted to attack him with her Hammer, but he'd grabbed it and snapped the handle clean off. Silver and Sonic noticed, and they both attempted to stop Zenith. He threw them both aside. He took Amy and left in the Egg glider.

Conner, Shadow, Johnny, and Jun soon went back to Conner's house. They immediately noticed Knuckles. Hey, Knux, Conner shouted. Knuckles ignored him. Jim waved to Conner as he booted up his computer. Knuckles waited as Jim opened up the Internet and looked up echidnas. Dad, I'm sure you've found out about my gadget and that it works. I'm going through. Conner said as he, Crush 40, and Shadow headed for the shed.

Not far away, Marissa was doing her homework. She went to her backpack and began to pull out her laptop. It reminded her of lunch. She remembered Conner asking her to come over after school. Crap, she thought, Conner wanted me to come over after school, and I've been home for a while now I hope he won't be mad! She then left for Conner's house.

At that time, in the Sonic world, The Chaotix Detective Agency had a visitor. I hear you're the best detectives around these here parts, the stranger said. True, Vector the crocodile replied as he glanced at the stranger's large cowboy hat, but where'd you hear this? Not a lot of people think so. Let's just say I'm an ex-member, the Stranger stated as he took off his hat. Mighty! Put er there, pal! Vector cried, holding out his hand. So, you just here to say hi? Vector asked. Naw, Mighty replied I guess I'm-a comin' back. Just then, Charmy Bee and Espio the Chameleon entered the room. Hey, guys, look who it is! It's Mighty! Remember? Vector said as he noticed them. Wow, Espio, Mighty said, Back when I was part of the team, you were a loudmouth smart-alec. Now look at you, you're a ninja for Pete's sake! Well, a lot can happen in a little time, Espio shrugged

Back at the Smith residence, Jim and Knuckles were still looking up echidnas. Just as Jim clicked on another picture, the doorbell rang. Knux, hide! he yelled as he ran to the door. As he opened it, Marissa told him, Hi, Mr. Smith! Conner told me to come over. Where is he? Conner, Jim replied, Is away right now. Sorry. Marissa noticed Knuckles under a sheet. So that's what Conner wanted to show me, huh? Well, if that's who I think it is, then Conner isn't simply away' she thought. She then snuck around to the shed.

Meanwhile, Conner became Duke at Angel Island. He picked up his cell phone and called the Chaotix. Chaotix Detective Agency, Vector answered, What do you need detected? Come to Angel Island. Duke said. Crush 40 went to admire the world, and Shadow went to fetch Silver. Just as Duke was about to head over to the Master Emerald, Marissa arrived. Who are you? she asked. I've played every Sonic game and seen every show, but you don't look familiar. Well, Duke replied, knowing Marissa didn't recognize him. IuhI'm in the next game. Hey, wait- Marissa was interrupted as Duke took off. He became Conner and returned. Conner, there you are! Your dad said you were away'. I guess you were. Marissa said. Yeah, Conner laughed, Oh, did you see a red hedgehog? I've been lookin' for him. Oh, yeah, he panicked when he saw me. I think he headed your way. What's his name? I don't remember him in any games. Name's Duke. Wait Whaddya mean? How'd you know this was the Sonic Universe, and all Sonic Games are real here? Conner asked. I sorta figured. Marissa told him, Because I've played Sonic enough to know that we're on Angel Island. Where's Amy, anyway? I've been dying to meet her! Conner thought for a second. Besides the dream, I haven't met' Amy. Well, he said, I dunno where she's at. I haven't spoken to her. Too bad, Marissa pretended to sob, I really wanted to meet her! Why don't we find her then?  Conner asked. Just then Sonic and Tails came up. Hiya! Sonic said, waving, My friend Amy's been napped. We need your help. Conner, how long have you already been here? I mean you already know Sonic for Pete's sake! I'm up for an adventure, though, so let's go save Amy! Marissa said. Just get ready. So Sam, where's the Tornado? Who's Sam? Sonic asked. Oops, I mean Tails. Conner chuckled, Tails, where's the Tornado? Conner asked while Marissa was playing with Sonic's ear and giggling. It's due east. Hey, just where do you get Sam' out of Tails', anyway? Tails wondered. Just then Crush 40 came back. Hey, Johnny said, Tails, where's the Tornado? I wanna take it for a spin! It's due east, but we'll have to make some modifications. Tails sighed. I'll help. Conner announced, Once my dad said that I could have his old car if I fixed it, thinking I couldn't, but one day, after lots of tiring work, the engine finally started. My dad, shocked as he was, kept his word. I tend to drive it up and down our road, and sometimes to the corner store. Plus, I built the portal between here and Earth myself. Whaddya mean? Sonic asked, We're on Earth! Well, Conner frowned, I'm from a different Earth. I'm from an Earth where humanoid hedgehogs don't exist. Now, anyway, let's make the Tornado into a transport craft!

Meanwhile, Eggman retreated back to the ARK, for it was a temporary headquarters. No more shall Sonic destroy my bases Not while Zenith Alpha is around! Now, to finish Project Zenith I just need my grandfather's notes. Eggman! yelled Shadow, who had used Chaos Control to teleport himself and Silver aboard the ARK, This ends here! You will not create another hedgehog! CHAOS Chaos Control! Silver exclaimed speedily, freezing time for everyone except for himself and Shadow. Shadow, don't destroy the ARK! We'll be killed too! Besides, it's your home and only reminder of Maria! If you destroy it, then Maria will be forgotten! Silver yelled. CONTROL! Shadow said, unfreezing time. He flipped through the air and punched Eggman in the face. Leave this place alone, Shadow said, You are a disgrace to the Robotnik name! You may be Maria's cousin, but that doesn't mean I like you. Get out or else. Shadow held up his fist, shaking it at Eggman. Eggman decided to rebuild the Death Egg and use it as his base instead, as Shadow's words actually made him realize some of his mistakes. Though he wasn't about to change, it made him think.

Jim was busy at home. He and Knuckles were done with echidnas on the computer and decided to go to town. His wife, Sarah, came too. Knuckles claimed to be a Kid in his Halloween costume,' which he spent hundreds of dollars making'. Luckily for everyone, it worked. They then went to the zoo to find more about echidnas.

The Chaotix were baffled by their call. They could do what they were told, but it may be a trap. Remember a little while back, when Eggman had everyone participate in his charade? This could be that all over again! Vector said. Well, Mighty shrugged, I'm up for some action! Okay, then, Vector laughed, We'll do it for the new guy'. Too bad Knux quit, Mighty said as they left in their Chaotix-mobile', He was the meaning of tough!

Conner turned into Duke, wondering about his gem as he and the others rode the Tornado. He sat on the lower wing while everyone else was in the newly built cabin, except for Sonic, who was on the other side of the plane's wing. Hmm, Duke thought as he inspected the crystal, this thing could this have actually turned me into a hedgehog? We're almost at our stop! Tails announced. Duke put his gem away and rolled off of the wing. They were over land, which scared everyone except Duke, because they were quite high in the air. Duke quickly used Chaos Control to slow the flow of time enough to slow physics and land safely. Tails hurriedly landed the plane nearby, only to find that Duke was fine. Everyone sighed in relief. Whoa, Duke said, Sorry guys, I just needed to get something.

Silver and Shadow noticed the Tornado flying around as they returned from the ARK. Shadow noticed Duke fall out, and the plane landing to get him. Laughing, Shadow ran over, only to find Duke perfectly fine. Here's Silver, Shadow said, almost cheerfully, Now get Maria back! Alright, alright, Duke said, Ready, Silver? 123 Chaos Control! A portal soon opened right next to Duke and Silver, which they went through. Duke began to think about the game with this kind of Chaos Control. _Rouge,_ he thought, _where the hell is she? Oh, crap The master Emerald!_

Rouge was at the Master Emerald Temple. Dammit, she said to herself, This thing is heavy! She then noticed a face inside the emerald. Help. It seemed to say. Rouge tried and tried to help it, but without success. Who are you? Rouge asked. M-my name is Tikal, the voice said. Tikal was obviously an Echidna, like Knuckles. She was female, and she was an orange color. I've been in here for so long I just want out, she said. Sorry, gal, Rouge smirked, I can't help.

Spaz was with the group, not far from the Master Emerald. The group didn't notice Rouge, however. Where's Duke? Spaz thought. Just then, Liz the Wolf came up. Hey, Liz said to Spaz, I think something's up at the Temple. Spaz looked, and she saw Rouge. Hey! Spaz yelled, Get away from there! Startled, Rouge accidentally knocked the Emerald off its pedestal, down the huge staircase-pyramid, onto the hard ground, shattering it. Tikal was freed, but so was the being known as Chaos. Luckily, Chaos was docile since it was defeated and put back into the Emerald. On the other hand, Angel Island was falling from the sky...

Duke and Silver were aboard the Space Colony ARK, circa 50 years ago. They immediately noticed it was livelier than in the future. They heard laughing, so they hid. They noticed Shadow and a young girl playing – Maria. Shad- Silver said, but was interrupted by Duke. Dude, Duke whispered, He won't recognize us; this is the past, remember? Shadow seemed a lot happier now then he did back in the future. Alright, here's the plan, Duke said. Your mental powers should be able to trick Shad's mind, make him think Maria's missing – I don't want to hurt him too much – and I'll get her to come. The plan worked smoothly, but Duke forgot one major thing: Black Doom. Doom noticed the hedgehogs as soon as they arrived, and sent Duke a telepathic message. Foolish creature wait it's you! Here at last. Ha, you don't know about your father, do you? I'll just show you! Doom said. Before he could answer, Duke and Silver left for the future with Maria.

Meanwhile, Duke's group, (Crush 40, Sonic, Tails, and Marissa) ran into the Chaotix. H-hey! Lookie, Johnny Gioeli said, It's Team Chaotix! Yeah, yeah, Vector said, Now who called us? It'd better be important. My friend did, Marissa told him, He left, apparently. I hate it when people just leave on me, Sonic sighed.

Jim bought an echidna and a hedgehog at a pet store. Upon arriving home, He, Sarah, and Knuckles took a rest. I ought to be getting back home, Knuckles said. The three went through Conner's portal together. Knux was shocked to see Tikal. He saw the Master Emerald in pieces, and just freaked. He went into a rage and almost hurt Tikal. Rouge apologized, and Knux calmed down, but Angel Island was still falling – fast.

Duke, Silver and Maria reappeared on the ARK. Puzzled, Maria asked, What's going on here? Where's Shadow? Upon walking into a large room, the three noticed something. Oh no, Duke cried, It's the Biolizard! He was right. Standing right there was the Prototype for Shadow. Not wasting any time, nor worrying if it'd affect the timeline, Duke charged. As Conner, he'd fought it in a game, and got a little overexcited about living the game. Sadly, the thing hurt him quite badly before he could do much. Quickly, Silver used his telekinesis to throw some boxes at the Biolizard. It didn't do much, but it did buy Duke some time to get up. Thinking quickly, he threw Silver on top of the creature, where he could attack its life support systems. Then, Silver used his powers to lift Duke up to attack. However, Biolizard countered the hedgehogs' attacks with its acidic breath. Duke shrugged, and took a running jump towards its head, doing a round-about kick. The Biolizard flinched greatly, and spun around, hitting Duke with its tail and throwing Silver off its back. Duke thought for a second. _Hmm_ he thought, _how'd I beat it again? That's right, there was a health meter, but besides that Erm how bout we run!_ He grabbed Silver and Maria, and then he used Chaos control to escape.

Angel Island was in danger. It was in a period where it was above land, not water. Chaos was able to hold it up for a while, but not forever. It did, however, manage to move the floating island to a position over the water. Sonic, Tails, and Crush 40 took off in the Tornado II, while Marissa waited for Conner. She saw Shadow. Hi Shadow! she called out, Have you seen Amy? Or how about my friend Conner? Well, Shadow replied, I've not seen Amy in a while, but as for this Conner' character, describe him for me. Alright, Marissa described, Conner is taller than me, he has dark hair, um, he usually wears glasses Shadow was surprised. Him? He's Conner? The shape shifter? He should be back soon, he went back in time. 'Shape shifter'? Marissa asked, quite confused, What do you mean, Shape shifter'? He's just some human boy who plays videogames. Hmm? Shadow shrugged, He can turn into a red Hedgehog at will apparently. Marissa was quite confused. Was that what he really wanted to show her?

Eggman had Amy aboard his new Scrap Egg base, which is, as the name suggests, built from the Scraps of the Death Egg. Zenith Alpha had searching for potential expansion areas when he discovered a way into the old Scrap Brain base. As his personality was partially based on Sonic's, he wanted to defeat Eggman. He didn't tell his master about this. He repaired some of the base, and its robot guardians.

In the meantime, Yuji Naka was completely skeptical about the e-mail, but his curiosity got the best of him. He'd arrived at the Smith household, but was disappointed. He noticed Wolfy Unger walking up, with his brother, Jurgen. "Hey," Wolfy called, in a slight German accent, "Ain't you Yuji Naka?" "Why, yes I am!" Mr. Naka exclaimed. "Alright, Mister Naka," Wolfy said, "This is our friend's house. He said to meet him here after school." "He did?" Naka asked, "Well, he E-Mailed me saying I'd be amazed at what I'd see here." "Hmm..." Jurgen pondered, "Look at this... He calls us, the Sonic club at school, here, then he gets Yuji Naka, Sonic's creator, and look at the driveway: A red Dodge Stealth; Jun Senoue's if I'm not mistaken.

Duke was using Chaos Control to escape from the Biolizard when he saw a familiar face... Sonic. The blue hedgehog was accompanied by his friends Amy, Knuckles, Tails, Rouge, and Eggman. Shadow was nowhere to be seen. Duke stopped using Chaos Control for a moment, and saw an even more familiar face; his father. "D-Dad? What's he doing here?" he asked. "Who, Doctor Smith?" Maria asked. "_Doctor_ Smith?" Duke asked, "Since when was he a Doctor?" Suddenly, the Doctor called out, "CHAOS CONTROL!" Duke repeated his father's words, escaping into the future.

Meanwhile, in the...err..."real" world, Conner's longtime friend, Arianna, came over. The two had known each other for a very long time. Conner almost saw the girl as a little sister. She saw the odd goings-on and was overly excited. Spying on Conner through a hole in the fence earlier, she'd had a general idea of what was going on. "Hey," she said, approaching Jurgen, Wolfy, and Mr. Naka, "What's going on?" "None of your business!" Wolfy snapped, "Miss I-have-a-crush-on-Conner-but-won't-say-so!" "I do not!" the girl hissed. "Okay," Jurgen broke up the fight, "We can argue later, but right now, let's go check this out." The three entered the house. "Hello...?" Arianna called, slightly frightened. "Hey," Yuji Naka said, looking out the open back door into the shed, "Look, maybe that's it...?" The four entered the portal.

"Let me go!" Amy commanded of Eggman, who was quite proud of himself. The man was working on Zenith Beta. An advanced version of Alpha, Beta is mostly biological, while Alpha is mechanical with a personality...or four. Alpha, however, had serious issues. Eggman, though a genius, put four hedgehogs together, hopefully having the strengths of each. The plan backfired, however, and Alpha went completly insane. Alpha upgraded himself with parts of the Scrap Brain base, with weapons including saw blades on his forearms and treads on his feet. He was prepared.

On Angel Island - which was now afloat on the water - Crush 40 returned with the Tornado II. Duke, Maria, and Silver arrived at the same time. Shadow about fainted after seeing Maria. The two hugged. "Maria," Shadow said, his eyes tearing, "I've missed you... so very much." "Shadow," the girl said, "It's only been five minutes." "Try fifty years," Duke said. "Fif-Fifty years? But I haven't aged a single day!" "Your cousin has," Duke explained. "Which cousin?" Maria asked. "Ivo?" Duke asked, "Don't you have a cousin named Ivo?" "Umm... no" Maria stated, with a confused expression on her face. "Umm... well, I guess he's a generation down..." Duke shrugged. Just then, his other friends arrived. Jurgen, Wolfy, Arianna, and Mister Yuji Naka himself. "Amazing! They're real!" Naka shouted with glee. Marissa saw the red hedgehog and ran over to him. "Conner?" she asked, "Is that you?" "Umm, no, no. Who's Conner? If he's me, then I'm him, and I'm not him, so that means he's not me, so I'm not him." Duke said, panicking. "Of course you are! Just by saying that, I know you are!" Marissa said laughing, "So, how do you do it?" "Well, umm, I kinda...well, it's not like morphing into a Power Ranger! It's kinda like you focus your mind, and tell yourself to change... so it's a little like a Power Ranger." Marissa tried this. "I can't do it!" She cried, impatient. "Hmm," Conner pulled the gem from his belt, "Maybe this had something to do with it?" Noticing Arianna, he got mad. He changed into Conner while Arianna was looking away. "ARIANNA?!" he screamed, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! YOU SHOULD BE AT HOME! IT'S TOO DANGEROUS HERE!" Typical big brother act. "Well, umm, you see, I followed them in! It was their idea!" The girl panicked, pointing toward the brothers Unger. Conner accidently dropped his gem in the frustration. "What's this?" Arianna asked, picking it up. Her ears suddenly grew big. "What's going on?" she asked, completely freaked out. Her skin got furry. "Umm, umm, I'm scared!" she said. Wings grew from her back. "Ack! What the heck?! What's happening to me?!" Everyone watched in a mixture of shock, awe, and horror as she shrunk two and a half feet. She was now in the form of a bat. "What the heck am I?" She asked, after finishing her transformation. "You're a bat, now." Rouge said, smiling. "A bat?" She asked, "How can I be a bat? I was just human!" "Because of this," Conner said, picking up the gem. "Wait, how come you're not changing?" the new bat asked, puzzled. "Because I've already been transformed... you should've seen me before!" Conner joked. "But, anyway, actually I have already transformed. I guess it does it once and that's it." He said. "You're not a bat!" the bat said, skeptical. "Oh, on the contrary-" he said, turning into Duke, "-I'm a hedgehog. Close enough?" Everyone was completely stunned.

Duke took Arianna away... for a "date". In reality, he went to teach her the basics of what happened, and to train her to fight. In the Green Hill zone, the two trained vigorously. "So, just picture yourself in your head and tell your body to change." Duke said. "That's it?" Arianna the bat asked. "Yep, try it!" Duke told her. She did so, and was amazed. "That felt so neat!" she said. The two layed down, after Arianna turned back into a bat. "So..." Duke said, sighing, "Name?" "Huh? I thought you knew my name!" Arianna said, startled. "Yes, yes. I know your name; Arianna. But I meant, like, an alternate form name." "A what?" Arianna asked. "Well, like my name is Conner, but this guy's name is Duke." Duke said, pointing to himself." "Oh," Arianna nodded, "Hi Duke! My name shall be... Alexis!"

Conner's parents were there, and his mother was shocked. His father, however, was not. What was up with this guy? He pulled from his pocket... a Chaos Emerald. What past does he really have? The man ran off and used Chaos Control.

Arianna...erm... Alexis, after training melee combat with Duke, was with Rouge learning to be a bat. "You just flap them!" Rouge smirked, showing Alexis how to use her wings. "Put your faith in them, and flap. Believe that they can carry you." Rouge demonstrated. Alexis quickly caught on, and was soon doing tricks. Rouge soon showed her many flight-combat moves. "There's the 'Screw Kick'" the ivory bat said, spinning quickly and then kicking her leg out.

Duke sat with Marissa for a bit. "Can I touch it?" Marissa asked, gesturing toward the strange gem. "No," Duke said, "It's too dangerous. I'm afraid that it could turn someone into something monsterous. Perhaps later, but not now." There was some silence after that. Well, not really. With half of the people going crazy over being in the Sonic world, Shadow crying while hugging Maria, bats training, brothers talking about fighting aliens, and so much more, it was actually quite loud. "What's it like?" Marissa asked, breaking the false silence, "Being a hedgehog, I mean." "Well," Duke replied, thinking hard, "You get a tail... you can roll into a ball when you want... though I'm not good at it. Umm... you're shorter, though. I mean, I was pretty tall before, but now, I'm like 3 feet tall! And there's the... well, there's the funny nose!" Duke poked his nose. "It's fun to poke... oh, wait... I'm making you want to be one even more, huh?" Duke asked. Marissa sighed.

Alexis was done, and returned to her human form. "No matter how many times I do that, it always feels weird, but cool." She said to herself. Though it was quite stressful morphing like that, Arianna could deal with it. She thought, _Life just got so much better! It ain't everyday where you turn into a bat!_

Eggman's Zenith Beta was nearing its testing phase. The professor was conducting some early tests already when he heard a voice. "Ivo Robotnik," the voice said, "I see you've come a long way." "You have as well..." Doctor Eggman-Robotnik said, "...Mister James Smith!" Just as Eggman deduced, Conner's father was there. "Yep, it's your old student." Conner's dad said, "Now, anyway, you remember that project I did during my last year at college?" "Which one?" Eggman asked, smugly, "I'll bet that Gem thing... what was it called?" "Project C.E.G., or Chaos Energy Gem. It was a project where I made some gems using Chaos Energy. I only got to do the two; One I kept, and the other I gave you." "Yes," Eggman said, proudly, "And I've used the thing to power many of my greatest inventions!" "That's the one. I hid mine in a special place... the very same place where Sonic got an actual Chaos Emerald. Apparently, my Son got a hold of it, using his own 'Dimensional Portal'. I tried to tell him it wouldn't work, but he did it anyway. Something happened to the gem in that odd place. The thing not only infused him with Chaos energy, but it transformed him into a hedgehog!" "Hmm," Eggman said, scratching his chin, "That _is_ odd. Perhaps the presence of Sonic did that..." "Another person, his longtime friend and 'little sister', turned into a bat. Angel Island fell from the sky not long before. One person was responsible; Rouge." "So," Eggman deduced, "Apparently, people create imprints on the Emeralds, which are absorbed by the CEG's - or at least yours - and transferred to the holder."

Arianna and Conner, again both human, were talking to their friends. "Yeah," Wolfy said, "Your powers could come in handy if we fight aliens when we're older." "For the last time, Wolfy, There are no such thing as aliens!" Jurgen said, aggrevated. Conner thought for a moment. He was about to try and see if he could transfer morphing energy to one of the Unger brothers, but saw a vision with a dragon who was killing people.

Johnny Gioeli was telling Tails about how he loved planes... Yuji Naka was admiring Sonic, and Knuckles was chatting with Tikal. Suddenly, Zenith Alpha arrived via teleportation. "You all shall die!" the hybrid cried, flailing his saw-arms around. Conner and Arianna - the dynamic duo - quickly transformed into their... animal forms. Conner jokingly pretended to be a Power Ranger. "Chaos Power Transform!" he yelled, making odd gestures and almost cracking up laughing. The two almost naturally tag-teamed against the Alpha-stage hybrid. Suddenly, the thing grabbed Duke and Alexis and held them down. "Alright, fakers." the hybrid announced, in a Sonic-like voice, "Let's see you fight. I'm sure some of you know where the Scrap Brain base was. I have rebuilt it! Come fight me there, if you think you can handle it!" The robotic quad-hedgehog laughed, dropped the two shapeshifters, and teleported back to his base.

The sun was setting. Had it really only been one day? Duke, who turned back into Conner, decided that home was the safest place... for now. Everyone returned to the "real" world, including Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Rouge. They all stayed up for most of the night. Jun and Johnny were playing pool and writing songs. "Wow," Johnny sighed, "What a day!" Conner and friends played Sonic games for a while. Sonic was completely addicted. "Not everyday ya play a video game starring yourself, right?" he asked, speeding through the Green Hill zone in less than 20 seconds. Sam...err... Tails played himself on "Sonic Adventure 2" for Dreamcast. Shadow and Maria were catching up with each other, though Maria had the most catching up to do. Sonic eventually beat the first game with relative ease - and every Chaos Emerald. Quickly swapping cartridges on the Sega Genesis, he loaded up Sonic 2, beating it with the same ease as the first game. "You make it look so easy!" Conner pretended to sob, "I always played this, but could never get past Chemical Plant! Only pretty recently could I do it!" Not even looking away from the screen, Sonic said, "Noob. I got past that years ago! My first time too!" This was quite true, in two senses; He was there in reality - His reality - quite a while back. Though the game was only three months older than Conner, time went differently there. For Sonic, it was only about a year or two. The other sense this was true was because he was already at the "Death Egg" zone, fighting the final boss. Conner looked toward Knuckles, who was playing "Sonic Battle" on Conner's Game Boy Advance SP. Sonic swapped for "Sonic & Knuckles" with Sonic 3 locked-on. He beat it, but broke a sweat... finally. It was longer than he'd expected. Conner was playing "Shadow the Hedgehog" on X-Box with Arianna. The two were laughing trying to get each other. Suddenly, Conner's watch beeped, making him jump. Looking to it, he saw 2:00 A.M. "Uh oh," he said, "Peeps had better get to bed!" Just then, his dad came in the doorway. "Okay," he announced, leaning against the wall, "Couch-beds are unfolded, Air matresses are pumped up, and all that crap. Get some sleep, something must be done tomorrow." The phone suddenly rang, and Jim ran to get it. It was Arianna's mother, who was very concerned. "Jim? Is Arianna there? She's been out all night and I'm very scared." "Hey," Jim said calmly, "Your daughter's okay, she's right here." He motioned for Arianna, who understood and walked over. She took the phone. "Mama," she said, "I'm okay, it's just that... something happened to me." "Oh, dear, are you hurt? I'm coming over right away!" the girl's mother said, frightened. "No, mama. I-I turned into a bat, mama. Like Rouge." The girl's mother obviously thought her daughter was mentally ill. Arriving in about 5 minutes, because they live next door, the mother hugged her daughter. "I'll get you help, Arianna, don't worry." "Mama, I already have help; Conner and Rouge. Conner showed me how to transform between a human and a bat, and Rouge taught me how to fly." The girl said, transforming. Her mother fainted.

Morning came, and luckily, it was saturday. Conner woke everyone up and went out to pick up some groceries. He ran outside to his 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T. Sliding across the hood, Bo Duke style, he hopped through the car's window and started the engine. Arianna came along, but simply opened the door. "Listen to this baby purr!" Conner said, admiring his car's 450-Horsepower Hemi V8 engine. "Speaking of engines," Arianna stated, yawning, "Looks like you need some gas!" Driving down to the gas station, he sent Arianna in to buy the groceries (3 gallons of milk and several different boxes of cereal). Conner pumped about 10 gallons of fuel into his car's fuel tank, reaching a total of almost 40 dollars! "Man," he said, "Gas is just _so_ expensive!" Just then, someone drove up in a Porsche 944 Turbo. It was an odd pinkish color and very worn. Though Conner's Challenger was also worn, at least _his_ was orange. "Nice car," Conner said, looking past the obviously old paint job. "Yeah," the driver laughed, "It gets me around." The man looked to Conner's Challenger and said, "Yours is pretty cool, too. How much Horsepower?" "450," Conner said, as Arianna was returning, "Well, I gotta go, so, see ya around!" Conner got into his Challenger, with Arianna, and went home.

By the time Conner and Arianna got back, everyone was doing the same thing they were doing last night. Sonic was already on the Dreamcast games, and Tails was playing Genesis. Shadow was playing the game which featured himself with Maria. "HELLO?!" Conner yelled, "We gotta get back to the other world to find Amy and everything!" "Oh, right!" Sonic said, saving his game and shutting off the Dreamcast. Everyone in the house marched down, single file, to the shed, going through the portal.

Above a mountain, near the Portal, Blaze the Cat and Marine the Racoon appeared. "What is it this time?" Blaze asked, mostly to herself. "Guess Sonic's in trouble!" Marine answered. The two noticed the large group coming from the portal. "What the?" Blaze said, "Perhaps that's why we're here...?" The cat jumped from the mountain, landing next to Conner. "Blaze?" he said as he noticed her. "Do I know you?" Blaze asked. "Not personally... but anyway, I know why you're here; Eggman is at it again. He may be able to transport between different dimensions, so watch your back." Conner replied. "'Ey, Blaze!" Sonic said, walking up. Blaze was confused by the strange boy, but Sonic seemed to know him... at least a bit. "Who are you?" she asked Conner, "And how do know Sonic?" Conner was slightly irritated, but willing to explain. "Well, in short, where I'm from, All of you are just video game characters. I found a way to come here, where you're real. Don't worry, you're only nonexistent in my world." "Umm...okay...?" Blaze acknowledged, somewhat confused. "Look at this!" Sonic said, showing Blaze the game "Sonic Rush" on Conner's Nintendo DS. Blaze immediately understood. Conner proceeded, "All of our dimensions may be in danger... I was with Eggman and kinda... gave him the plans for my Portal." Conner pointed toward the portal he created.

Eggman was nearly through testing for Zenith Beta when his old robot, E-123 Omega busted into the doctor's workshop. "I don't think so!" Omega said, in his monotone robotic voice. The robot began to destroy Eggman's base, but Zenith Alpha stopped him. "Well, _I_ don't think so!" Alpha said, tearing Omega's arms off. Just then, Shadow jumped out from Omega's Chest. "Chaos Blast!" he called, wielding the Blue-colored Chaos Emerald. This shattered much of the already damaged Death Egg, which was being used as a ground base. Zenith Beta was floating in a tank, incomplete. Alpha was damaged, and returned to the Scrap Brain base. Shadow was very weak, and believed his friend, Omega, was dead. He closed his eyes, and pictured Maria.

Having Maria back restored him. She restored his power, his happiness, and his...everything. He opened his eyes, and yelled, "CHAOS CONTROL!"

Eggman was wounded, unconcious, and bleeding very badly. Zenith Beta was taking some care of him, but due to his incomplete-ness, he was only a little more sane than Alpha. Suddenly, the door opened. "Hello?" a feminine voice called out. "Is this Eggman's base?" The odd prototype arose and came to the voice. It came from a blonde girl on the chubby side. "Hurt..." Alpha could not speak well, but managed to get that out. "Eggman's hurt?" the girl asked. "Hurt..." Alpha pointed toward the injured doctor. The girl ran and kneeled beside him. He awoke. "Eggman? My name is Lindsay. I'm here to help. Keep that arm up." "C-Call...Nega." the doctor commanded, choking up some blood. Lindsay followed the order, and used Eggman's computer to contact Eggman-Nega. Before the man could do anything, Lindsay screamed, "EGGMAN'S HURT! COME HERE!" Nega teleported over and assisted the man.

On Angel Island, the gang was hanging around by the Master Emerald temple. Sonic was still playing video games while the gang made their plan. "Why can't we just pass that gem around?" Wolfy asked, "Them aliens ain't gonna wait forever!" "For the last time, Wolfy, Aliens ain't gonna come!" Jurgen replied, irritated. "Besides," Conner continued, "I am just... afraid of what the gem might do... plus it _does_ hurt, y'know?" "What'll it do?" Wolfy asked, "Turn me into a wolf? I don't care what it turns me into, okay?" Conner sighed. He was quite irritated. "Wolfy," he explained, "This isn't like being a Power Ranger; I mean sure, I can do all kinds of hand things and yell stuff, but I don't have a morpher. I can't just do that stuff and magically get a costume, I need to use mindpower. And another thing; I might've become a hedgehog... but Arianna became a bat. Who's to say that you won't become some mindless... thing?" Wolfy was saddened. "Or," he said, quickly cheering up, "I could turn into Hannah Montana! Then I'd be some girl... some hot celebrity girl." Everyone laughed. "Wolfy," Conner sighed, "Has this thing turned anyone into a human? What if it turns you into one of those aliens you're always talking about? What was that one... a Chryssalid?" "Oh," Wolfy eagerly stated, "Yeah, those things lay eggs in ya...make ya one of 'em!" "Exactly," Conner continued, "What if you go and... err... lay eggs in all of us? We'd die, Wolfy." "Okay," Arianna interrupted, "We're the only... err... 'Rangers' now, so we gotta find out _all_ of our powers."

Conner and Arianna were talking together, trying to discover the rest of their powers, when Marissa showed up. "He's _my_ man, sister!" Arianna said, pouncing on Marissa. "Cat fight!" Wolfy yelled, noticing from a distance. "Girls!" Conner yelled, "You two are my best friends. I wouldn't trade you for Hannah Montana, okay? Well, I might, but then she might not even like me, then I'd have no friends... I'm kidding!"

In the old "Marble Zone", a group was talking. "Brothers," their leader said, "I, the Iron, want you to find... and kill this man." Iron pointed to a picture of Duke. "Of course, master." said Natols, first of the Seven. "We shall," said Bellon, second of the Seven. "Yes..." the third, Aquese, acknowledged. The other three simply nodded. The Brotherhood of Seven was, Natols the Bloodspiller(Hedgehog), Bellon the Lifeless(Chameleon), Aquese the Flesheater(Tasmanian Devil), Firestorm the Pyromaniac(Hedgehog), Bloodfury the Soulstealer(Hedgehog), and Onyxius the Devourer(Hedgehog). They all follow the Iron Unjustice, also known as "Metallic Chaos" and "Abyssal Damnation".

Arianna went off alone, back into the portal. She went over to her friend, Diana's house. "Arianna?" Diana answered the door, after her friend knocked on it. "Diana, you gotta see this!" Arianna changed into her bat form. "WHOA!" Diana said, her jaw about falling off. "How'd you do that?" Diana asked. "Well," Arianna/Alexis explained, "Y'know Conner from school? Well, he made a portal-thing and I went through with him. We ended up inside the Sonic games! Conner had some gem thing, and he dropped it. I just touched it, and I turned into a bat!" "Whoa," Diana said, shocked, "Do you have it?" "No," Arianna replied, "Conner still has the gem. He's in the Sonic world." The two went over to Conner's house again, into the portal.

The two appeared on South Island, in the "Green Hill" zone. "Huh," Arianna said, half-talking to herself, "How come we're at Green Hill now? When I came here I was at Angel Island." Suddenly, the Brotherhood of Seven attacked. Natols grabbed Diana and threatened her life if Arianna didn't tell the brotherhood where Duke was.

On Angel Island, Conner and his allies had been planning on how to defeat Zenith when Conner felt an odd sensation. He closed his eyes for a second, and upon opening them, he saw some evil men, with one of the members holding... who was that? Diana from school? He couldn't move. Strangely, his body moved on its own, and said in a feminine voice, "Alright, He's on Angel Island." He blinked his eyes again, and could move. "Conner, honey?" his mom asked, kneeling over the hedgehog, who was now laying on the ground, "Are you alright?" "I'm fine, mom." Conner/Duke sighed. "You know, you just passed out." Wolfy Unger told him. _What was that?_ Conner thought, _Was I just Arianna for a second? I better go find out..._ "Gotta go!" he said, "Chaos Control!"

Duke arrived next to Alexis and yelled at the brotherhood, who was leaving. "HEY YOU! GET BACK HERE SO I CAN KICK YOUR BUTTS!" The seven stopped and turned around. Quickly, they attacked him. Hurriedly, Duke did as he said, kicking all seven bandits in their rear ends. He ran off, grabbing Alexis and Diana, and again yelled "Chaos Control!" to return to Angel Island.

"How'd you know we were there?" Arianna - Now Human again - asked. "Because," Conner explained, "I...I saw through your eyes." "What the heck does that mean?" Arianna asked. "I dunno," Conner replied, "But I guess we have some sort of bond... Pinch yourself." Arianna did so. "Hmm... apparently it doesn't involve nerves. Maybe it's just brother/sister telepathy..." Conner observed. "But you two aren't blood related!" Diana said. "No... It's just so odd... It might have something to do with... my gem." Tails came to the three, with a Chaos Emerald. "We're gonna need all seven of these, guys."

"Where's Amy in all of this?" Arianna asked. Suddenly, Conner got that odd sensation again. He blinked his eyes and "awoke" as Amy Rose. This time, he could move. Looking around, he could tell that Amy was Eggman's prisoner. He heard a voice. "Who are you?" it said. He could tell that it was Amy's voice. She was talking to him in her mind. "I'm Conner. I dunno why I'm in your body, but I can try to get you outta here." Amy's arms were tied together, but her legs were free. Slowly, Conner raised Amy's legs and stood her up. However, he got an odd taste in his mouth and blinked his eyes, becoming himself again.

Opening his eyes, Conner found Arianna kissing him. Pushing her away, Conner was a little mad. "What are you doing!?" he said. "Uhh... CPR...?" Arianna said. Dropping the subject, Conner then told her, "I was just Amy Rose... she's trapped in Eggman's base." "Then let's go save her!" Arianna gleefully shouted, turning into Alexis. As they ran, Conner dropped his gem again. Diana saw it was reached down to pick it up. "Don't! Leave it alone!" Conner yelled, fearfully. Arianna wasn't so doubtful. "You can pick it up!" She said. "What? Why do you think she can?" "Because! Think about it; You got it in the Sonic 1 Special stage, right? Then you became a hedgehog. Rouge bumped the Master Emerald and I became a bat. Tails just had an Emerald, and I'll bet that if Diana touches the gem, she'll turn into a fox." Arianna explained. Diana then picked up the gem. Her ears grew to a shape similar to Tails'. "Ack... It feels so weird!" Diana said. "Told ya!" Arianna laughed. Diana grew fur... blue fur. "Erk... I'm kinda itchy!" She ended up a fox... A _one_ tailed fox.

The three headed out to ponder on where to find Amy. "We could try the Scrap Brain," Conner said. "What about Metropolis? It had like, the coolest music ever!" Ariana asked. "Well, have you heard _any_ music since we got here? Maybe Johnny and Jun will sing, but that's not the point. We can go to Metropolis, but forget the music. It's probably all destroyed and kinda creepy." Conner replied.

Suddenly, three people flew in on... hoverboards? A purple one... female. She was the first to land. "Wave the Swallow!" Ariana announced, surprised. Conner didn't know Wave very well; He never played "Sonic Riders". A second one - a green guy - landed. "Jet the Hawk." Conner recognized this one the best. The last one - a large grey guy - landed. "Storm the Albatross". "Babylon Rogues," Arianna asked them, "We need your boards!" "Hah!" Wave laughed, "Never! Especially not to some _human_!" The three... the "Power Rangers" "Morphed". "We just need 'em for a little while. We need to beat Eggman."

The 'rangers' flew on their hoverboards toward South Island. "Oh, wait," Duke said, "Wasn't that... What was his name? That robot guy. Didn't he say he was using the Scrap Brain as a base?" "Wait," Alexis replied, "You're right! Let's go!" She turned her hoverboard and sped off. Duke made sure Diana was following, and quickly sped toward Alexis. "Alexis! I don't think Amy's at that guy's base!" Alexis was slightly ahead of Duke, and suddenly, a huge rock wall rose from the ground. "ALEXIS!" Duke yelled as he was cut off. Alexis was on the opposite side of the wall. Duke and Diana looked for some way to go around the wall. "Oh, DUH!" Diana said, slapping herself in the face and riding her board upward. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning shot from the wall, hitting Diana's board. She fell. Duke luckily caught the fox-girl, and she rode with him. "Alexis..." Duke said, looking to the sky, "What now?"

Alexis was startled by the wall forming. Looking back, she said, "Duke! DUKE! Where are you? Conner, help!" She noticed a Chao in the corner of her eye. Turning to it, she called for it. "Chao," she called, "Hi little guy! What's your name?" The small creature quickly took off. "Come back!" Alexis yelled. The Chao did so, and motioned for the Bat to follow. "What?" Alexis asked, "You want me to follow you?" "Chao, Chao!" the creature nodded. It sped off, and the girl followed.

Duke noticed Zenith Alpha atop the wall. Without thinking, he ran up the steep slope and tackled the Android. They fell.

Diana was watching the hedgehog and the android fight. She screamed when Duke fell. She tried to run up the wall, but was knocked out when the thing zapped her.

Alexis arrived at... where was she? She was in a cave. A watery cave. It was a rock cave, with symbols on the walls. It was a wreck. "Hey... Labyrinth Zone!" She started hearing moans. "...Hello?" She called. The moans began getting louder, so she ran off.

Alexis ran into the Chao again. It was a "Dark" Chao. It tried to attack, and Alexis quickly ran away. Before she could turn around, she found herself with both Conner and Duke, in some strange place. "Which one of us do you really love?" they asked. Looking at them both, Alexis cried. "You both are the same person!" she yelled. Suddenly, Duke disappeared, and Alexis turned back into Arianna. She then said, "Conner, I love you..." and the two kissed. 


	2. Chapter 2

ACoF Part 2 again by CaptainKBX -See Part One; It's too long!-

The 'rangers' flew on their hoverboards toward South Island. "Oh, wait," Duke said, "Wasn't that... What was his name? That robot guy. Didn't he say he was using the Scrap Brain as a base?" "Wait," Alexis replied, "You're right! Let's go!" She turned her hoverboard and sped off. Duke made sure Diana was following, and quickly sped toward Alexis. "Alexis! I don't think Amy's at that guy's base!" Alexis was slightly ahead of Duke, and suddenly, a huge rock wall rose from the ground. "ALEXIS!" Duke yelled as he was cut off. Alexis was on the opposite side of the wall. Duke and Diana looked for some way to go around the wall. "Oh, DUH!" Diana said, slapping herself in the face and riding her board upward. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning shot from the wall, hitting Diana's board. She fell. Duke luckily caught the fox-girl, and she rode with him. "Alexis..." Duke said, looking to the sky, "What now?"

Alexis was startled by the wall forming. Looking back, she said, "Duke! DUKE! Where are you? Conner, help!" She noticed a Chao in the corner of her eye. Turning to it, she called for it. "Chao," she called, "Hi little guy! What's your name?" The small creature quickly took off. "Come back!" Alexis yelled. The Chao did so, and motioned for the Bat to follow. "What?" Alexis asked, "You want me to follow you?" "Chao, Chao!" the creature nodded. It sped off, and the girl followed.

Duke noticed Zenith Alpha atop the wall. Without thinking, he ran up the steep slope and tackled the Android. They fell.

Diana was watching the hedgehog and the android fight. She screamed when Duke fell. She tried to run up the wall, but was knocked out when the thing zapped her.

Alexis arrived at... where was she? She was in a cave. A watery cave. It was a rock cave, with symbols on the walls. It was a wreck. "Hey... Labyrinth Zone!" She started hearing moans. "...Hello?" She called. The moans began getting louder, so she ran off.

Alexis ran into the Chao again. It was a "Dark" Chao. It tried to attack, and Alexis quickly ran away. Before she could turn around, she found herself with both Conner and Duke, in some strange place. "Which one of us do you really love?" they asked. Looking at them both, Alexis cried. "You both are the same person!" she yelled. Suddenly, Duke disappeared, and Alexis turned back into Arianna. She then said, "Conner, I love you..." and the two kissed.

Suddenly, Duke approached and asked Alexis to wake up. "Huh? Whaddya mean?" The girl asked. She then found herself next to the wall with a terrible headache. She looked around, seeing a damaged android. "Gotta go before it wakes." Duke told the girl.

Meanwhile, on West Island, a blue-black hedgehog was chatting with a cyborg monkey. "Mojo," the hedgehog asked, "Are you like, really pale under your cyborg parts?" "Stella," Mojo sighed, "I'm completely robotic there; There's not a single patch of skin there." "Whatever..." Stella laughed.

Duke and Alexis had made it about a half-mile away from the wall. "Hey," Alexis realized, "Diana? Where's she at?" "Damn, Diana!" Duke yelled. The two ran back toward the wall, only to find Zenith awake.

Duke quickly knocked the robot out and ran off, remembering the day before he came to Sonic's world.

--(FLASHBACK)--  
"SEVEN RINGS IN HAND  
SPEED THROUGH NIGHTS WITH FEET IN SAND  
SEVEN RINGS IN HAND  
WONDERS ALL UNDER COMMAND  
SEVEN RINGS IN HAND  
WILD WITH JUST ON SINGLE HAND  
SEVEN RINGS IN HAND  
ARROWED HEARTS CATCH FIRE NOW!!"  
The time was 6:30 AM, and Conner woke up, continuing construction on his Dimensional portal. He was awakened by another invention; Basically, he hooked his mp3 player up to his laptop and downloaded a program, which opened a file at a certain time. Finished with the day's work on the device, Conner thought, _Hey, at this rate, It'll be done by tomorrow!_ He ran back to his room and unplugged his mp3 player from the speakers, and plugged in a set of headphones. Pressing the power button, he started it up and pressed play. "LIVE AND LEARN HANGING ON THE EDGE OF TOMORROW!" it screamed. "OW! DAMMIT!" Conner yelled, ripping off the headphones. He pressed the "volume down" button and put them back on. Humming to "Live and Learn", he shoved his laptop into his backpack. He swung it over his shoulder and ran out the door, onto the school bus.

On the bus, he heard a voice, "Conner, Whatcha doin after school?" it asked. "Oh," Conner replied as he removed his headphones, "Nuthin' much, Arianna, I might come over..." Just then, the bus stopped. Conner's friends, Jurgen and Wolfgang Unger got on, as well as Arianna's friend, Diana. Jurgen sat next to Conner, who had fallen asleep.

Conner was sleeping quite peacfully... that is, until Jurgen turned up the volume on Conner's mp3 player. "C'mon, Conner! We're at school!" Conner picked his head up, and looked out the window. Jurgen wasn't lying, at least not this time. Conner grabbed his backpack and stood up. One by one, students got off the bus. Conner got off and ran toward his classroom.

"Alright, class," The teacher, Mr. Bobbert, said, "I ain't gonna give ya much work today... Just write me a one-page story about whatever ya want!" "Conner quickly wrote a Sonic the Hedgehog story. "Done!" he said with a smile.

Hours later, the dismissal bell rang. Conner rode the bus back home. This time Arianna woke him up. He proceeded off the bus and went home.

He laid in his bed for a little while. He picked up his electric guitar, looked at the picture of him with Jun Senoue, and began playing "Open Your Heart". "Thunder, rain, and lightning. Danger, water rising..." he sang. His watch beeped, indicating that it was now 4:00 PM. Quickly, he jumped out of bed and grabbed his acoustic guitar.

Walking outside, he began playing "Wanted Dead or Alive". He walked next door to Arianna's house. He knocked on the door. "Hey, Conner!" His watch beeped again. "Sorry! I gotta go work!"

Conner got in his Dodge Challenger and sped off toward town. Drifting through the parking lot, he slid right into a spot in front of the CD Shop, owned by Hans Unger, Jurgen's father.

After working for 2 hours, Conner went home and went to bed. Tomorrow would be a _long_ day...

--(END FLASHBACK)--

Duke and Alexis arrived again at Angel Island. The two frantically screamed for everyone to find Diana.

Somewhat far away, in Station Square, two green...people showed up, out of nowhere. "Jon," the female one said, "Where are we?" "Around, June..." Jon replied, "We're in the past! Like, when Dad was young, y'know?" "Oh, right," June chuckled nervously. "Okay," Jon sighed, "So we're at Station Square, and we wanna find Dad. Best bet would be an 'older' area. Let's head to South Island." The twins hopped on their hoverboards and sped toward South Island. Their route would take them straight through Angel Island.

Duke and Alexis were frantically searching for Diana as two strangers sped past on hoverboards. "Huh? Who are they?" Duke asked. Suddenly, the two pulled around quickly and stopped right in front of the Hedgehog and the Bat.

"I'm your son, and my name is Jon." Jon said. "And I'm your daughter, April. But my real name is June." "Umm...okay... so how come your nickname is April, but your real name is June?" Duke asked. "Well, my name's like, June, but I like, don't like it, 'cause it's like, a boy's name, so like, I wanna be April, and it's like, the month I was born anyway, so like, yeah." "How's June a boy's name?" Duke asked. "Well, like, y'know, Jun Senoue? He's like, totally your favorite guitar guy, like, totally, and everything." "Ah, I see... So I named you after Crush 40?" "Yep," Jon smiled, "I'm surprised Mom agreed!" "So...Why are you two green?" Duke pondered, scratching his head. "Cause we're like, so totally twins." "June," Jon sighed, "Stop with the stupid act! You have a friggin robotic parrot that you built!" "Well, maybe I'm like, teaching it to like, totally talk like this." June frowned.

"So... Why _are_ ya green, anyway?" Duke asked. "Wha? Oh, side effect of time travel." Jon answered, closing his eyes while making a fist. Jon glowed white for a second, but soon faded. His fur now looked brown. "Ah, there ya go!" Duke grinned. June did the same as her brother, and also became brown. Her parrot came out of her backpack. "SQUAWK! LIKE, SO TOTALLY FAB!" it screeched. "Told ya, bro." she grinned at Jon. "Okay," Duke laughed, "It worked I guess! So anyway, whaddya need so bad that you gotta come back in time for?" "Well," Jon shrugged, "We, uh, kinda came to see ya!" "Huh? I dun understand. Why do ya need to come back in time to see me? I'm perfectly fine in the future...ain't I?" Duke asked. "Hey, hey, hold up," Alexis yelled, "Me and Duke are half-human. Aren't you two then?" "Yeah," June replied, "But we dun change much; We were born this way, and we usually stay this way...usually." She turned human for a bit and did a twirl, showing her human form.

Amy Rose was _still_ stuck in Eggman's base. "Oh, I wish Sonic was here!" she sighed. Suddenly, she heard banging in the other room. "SONIC! I'M IN HERE!" She yelled. It wasn't Sonic. Zenith Beta ran into the room and grabbed Amy by the throat. He held her against the wall. "You're such a fan girl." Zenith grinned, in a Sonic-like voice. Gasping for air, she whispered, "Chaos...c-control."

Amy found herself in a strange place. She saw... all purple. "Amy..." she heard. "Sonic? Where are you?" she asked. Suddenly, everything got all white. "Right here, Amy." Sonic smiled as Amy opened her eyes. Amy closed her eyes and puckered her lips, only to be dropped on the floor. "Ow, hey!" she shouted, annoyed. She stood up, and Sonic grabbed her hand. "Oh, Sonikku, how sudden!" she said, blushing. Sonic sped off out of Eggman's base, dragging Amy along.

Duke and Alexis were walking back to the portal. They went through. Reappearing in the shed outside of the Smith house, they walked in. Duke looked at the clock in his room. "7:30?" He asked himself. "Looks pretty light to me... So we can make it to school?" Alexis shrugged. The two returned to human form. "So," Ariana sighed, "Do you actually think we'll get married in the future?" "Well, I dunno... maybe..." Conner shrugged. "Well," Conner said, grabbing his backpack, "Guess we're goin to school!"

Stella was sitting against a tree on South Island. "Jason," she sighed, "I miss you so much!" She began to cry. "Stella," she heard, "I'll be with you, always."

Conner and Ariana were at school. The teacher was calling roll. "Conner?" she called, looking at the list of students. "I'm 'ere" Conner said, in a southern accent. "Ariana?" "HERE!" Ariana shouted. _It's great that Conner tutored me to get to his grade level,_ she thought, _But the work's hard!_ "Jurgen?" the teacher called. There was no response. "Jurgen?" She asked again, looking up from the paper. "He's in the Sonic world," Ariana explained. The teacher looked at her with a bewildered expression. Realizing she said too much, she looked at Conner. He motioned for her to continue. "Well, ya see, Conner made this portal-y thing and it takes ya to the Sonic world. Me and him came back, though. 'Cause we're good kids." The girl explained. The class erupted with laughter. "Seriously, guys!" Conner shouted. The class still laughed. Aggravated, Conner became Duke. "Now do ya believe me?" He asked with a smirk. The class was speechless. The teacher called channel 10 news. "Hello?" she said, "This is Ms. Joan Zachariah from Griffith Academy, I have a student you must see... come over right away."

"Hello, I'm Reginald Roundtree," said a man on TV "And I'm Heather Van Nest," his partner said. "Today we have some...strange news. A boy at Griffith Academy has...well, become a hedgehog, as in Sonic the Hedgehog. We now go live to Mario Diaz." Reg reported. "Thanks, Reg. Uhh... local teen Conner Smith transformed into a hedgehog today, apparently at will. He'll be taken to a hospital soon, to be... studied. Back to you, Reg." "Thanks, Mario. In possibly related news, musicians Johnny Gioeli and Jun Senoue have been reported missing. They composed the soundtracks of Sonic the Hedgehog games since 1998." "This just in," Heather Van Nest announced, "Conner was part of the 'Sonic Fan Club' at Griffith, and now some students are also missing." "Heather," Reg sighed, still on camera, "Today's a big day..."

Arianna's parents were very worried. "Marie," her father said, "What'll happen to our little girl?" "I dunno, Ronnie, she turned into some..._thing_!" "Weird critter or not, she's still our daughter!"

Back at school, an ambulance and several police cars arrived. Quickly, the grabbed Duke and put him in the back of the Ambulance. "WAIT!" Arianna cried, "COME BACK!" She figured this was the last time she'd see Duke. She walked home, depressed.

Duke was at the hospital. The doctors quickly got a couple of x-rays. They studied the pictures to find out about Duke's physiology. Then Dr. Wilson asked, "So how long have ya been able to do this, kid?" "only like, 2 or 3 days... Ever since I found some gem thing in the Sonic world..." Duke replied. "May I see it?" the doctor asked. "Well, I dunno... I dun trust it enough..." The doctor sighed, and stuck a needle into the hedgehog's arm. Duke quickly nodded off and fell asleep.

Arianna was at home, practically wasting away in a chair. "Anna, honey?" her mother asked, "What's wrong?" "Conner's been taken to the hospital..." Arianna sighed. "Oh, dear! What happened?" "He turned into a hedgehog... in the middle of school." Quickly remembering that her daughter could do the same, Marie Harris said, "Well, turn into a bat and save him! By the way, how'd you do it?" "Well," Arianna answered, "Ya like, think hard of transforming..." She turned into Alexis the Bat and left.

Everyone in Conner's class at the time was shocked... Particularly a friend of his, Rena. The two knew each other quite well... Rena was baffled when Conner said he was making a portal device, almost ending their friendship. She thought the kid was crazy! Now that she knew he really was that smart, she went for Arianna.

Running toward the Harris family's house, she stumbled upon a bat. "Rouge?" she called, surprised. Alexis the Bat turned around. "Rena?" she asked. "H-How do you know my name?!" Rena was shocked. "It's me, Arianna!" Alexis said, returning to human form. Rena fainted.

Meanwhile, Jurgen and Wolfy headed back to the portal. "Where's Conner?" Wolfy asked. "He's obviously back home..." Everyone grouped together and left through the portal.

Rena found herself at Arianna's house. Being a good cook, she made some snacks and prepared to go rescue Conner and visit Sonic...

Duke had been locked away in the ICU section of the hospital. Having been drugged by the doctor, he was in a shallow coma. He dreamt he was fighting against everyone he loved.

"Conner, you idiot! How could you?!" Duke asked as he fought Conner in his dream. Conner quickly dodged Duke's attack and countered it with his own. Of course, since they were the same person essentially, Duke grabbed Conner's fist and twisted it around. "C'mon, Duke! Whaddid I do? I'm sorry, okay?" Conner sighed. Quickly everything disappeared and Conner awoke in the hospital bed as Duke.

Rena, Arianna, and several Police officers showed up. The girls went to Duke, who returned to human form. "Conner, are ya alright?" Arianna asked. "I'm fine! How're you?" He replied. "Good... So, Rena wants to see Sonic now, how 'bout it?" "Sure thing... just gotta get ready...ugh" Conner sat up, but the IV's stopped him from getting far. "Hey, doc," He called as the cops were escorting the Dr. Wilson away. "Gimme outta this, please?" Quickly, the cops let him go and he removed the IV's and bandaged Conner's arms. "Thanks, man," Conner smiled as he offered the man his hand to shake, "Y'know, I've heard they letcha out early for good behavior." Suddenly, as the doctor was shaking Conner's hand, something slipped from under his coat. Conner picked it up. It was simply a nametag. Conner handed it back, but as the doctor snatched it, the boy noticed a familiar symbol on the back... it was something reminiscent of the one on Eggman's devices... "Hey, doc, where'd ya get that nametag? That symbol looks kinda familiar..." Conner asked. "This? It's just from another job I had..." the doctor chuckled. Conner didn't buy it. Something was wrong.

Conner and his friends went out the door and quickly ran to Conner's House.

They arrived, and quickly packed up their things. "Hmm..." Conner said, "d'we need anythin' else?" "Nah, I dun think so..." Arianna sighed. The three kids then ran out to the shed. "Lessgo now!" Conner yelled, Hopping up, doing a flip, and becoming Duke. Rena and Arianna followed quickly.

They found everyone waiting in Station Square. "Wow...it's so...amazing!" Rena admired the town. Shadow and Rouge were with Tails. Rouge was almost crying as the fox tried to repair E-123 Omega. Quickly, Duke ran in. "'Ey, Tails, Lemme try some'n on 'im a sec." Duke looked over to the damaged robot and inspected him. "He needs a new power source...hmm...Can't just build some kinda Ark Reactor like Tony Stark offa Iron Man..." Duke said, half to himself. "Wait," Tails realized, "You might have a bit of a point; I mean _something's_ gotta be powering the Space Colony Ark..." "That's right..." Duke laughed, "But wha'bout some kinda BioFuel maybe? Like, so he could 'eat' food and it would fuel him..." "Maybe... but let's fix him up first." Tails said. The two repaired the robot's arms. "What if...What if we _do_ make some sorta reactor? The only ingredient for that Ark Reactor I know of is palladium... If we had some... we could experiment until we get some sorta reaction..." Duke babbled. The two did so, and built something similar to the Ark Reactor, though not as powerful.

"Omega, can ya hear me?" Duke asked. "Affirmative. Sound receptors operational." Omega announced. "Maybe I oughta fix that annoying robotty voice..." Duke mumbled. "How are you feeling, Omega?" Tails asked. "Power levels above normal. Output capacity increased by 300." the robot replied. "Alright, Omega, I'm going to shut you down again so we can finish, is that okay?" "Affirmative." Omega agreed. Duke shut down the miniature reactor and began working on the robot's legs. "I dunno how long the reactor will last, Tails. On the movie, Tony Stark's first one only lasted for 15 minutes powering the Iron Man prototype..."

"Hey, Shadow, lemme see your shoe for a sec." Duke commanded. Shadow complied, taking off his Airskate and handing it to the red hedgehog. Duke gagged at the stench for a second, then looked at the air jet mechanism. "Hey, it's just like I thought it'd be!" Quickly, Duke tossed the shoe back and began to mimic it with Omega's foot. "Tails, how 'bout we put Air compressors in his legs? Make the jets real powerful, y'know?" Duke suggested. Tails nodded, and the two disassembled the robot's legs and completely rebuilt them with air compressors inside. "Now when I'm done with this, I wantcha to help me make an Iron Man suit, okay?" Duke laughed.

Meanwhile, Rena and Arianna were with Amy and Cream, boxercising. "How d'ya do this, Amy?" Arianna asked. "Well, ya box!" Amy said, throwing a punch. Arianna quickly dodged it and threw a punch at the pink hedgehog. "Ow, like that!" Amy laughed. Just then, Duke, Tails, Shadow, Rouge, and the new Omega walked in. "Hey, anyone up for a match?" "Nah," Amy sighed. "Aw, well. Then me and Omega will go practice, okay?" The two did so. Duke jumped on Omega's head, only for the robot to use its new air jets to flip over, knocking Duke off. Duke grabbed the robot's leg and swung upwards, grabbing his arm. He slid himself over and grabbed the other arm as well. Getting leverage from the arms, he kicked at the robot's chest, knocking him over. "That's enough, Omega." Duke sighed. The two returned to Amy's house.

As Duke and Omega walked in, Arianna noticed blood on the floor. "Conner? Are you...bleeding?" she asked. "Huh?" Duke said, raising his arm. "I dun see anythin'." He changed back to human form. His arm was almost covered in blood. Arianna was scared, and tears started to form in her eyes. She began getting angry at Omega. "YOU! YOU DID THIS!" She changed to her bat form, and got ready to attack. Conner jumped in the way. "Arianna! It was an accident! We were just practicing! He didn't mean it!" Conner screamed. Amy brought a bandage for his arm while Alexis hugged him.

The two went up to the roof. "Alexis," Duke sighed, "Y'know the couples like Brangelina, TomKat, and Jacksannah?" "Yeah...wait, who's Jacksannah?" Alexis asked. "Never mind, anyway, guess what." Duke said, somewhat excited. "What is it?" Alexis was starting to get excited as well. "One word... DUKELEXIS!" Duke screamed. Alexis screamed as well. The two stared at each other for a few seconds, then they kissed.

The two friends-turned-lovers returned to human form and got off the roof. Holding hands, they walked back into Amy's house. Conner let go of his new girlfriend's hand and gave her a hug. Blushing, the girl said, "Conner, not in front of everyone!" Then Conner let go of her.

Conner and his friends had been preparing to find Zenith Alpha. They knew that if they didn't take action, sooner or later, the robot would attack.

Conner went to scout out some good places to watch for Zenith, and to find Shadow. Suddenly, he heard a sound, coming from behind. Quickly transforming into Duke, he announced, "'Ey, who's there?!" "HEY! ARE YOU THE MCDONALDS GUY?!" the voice replied. "Uhh...no...Who are you?" Duke asked. "THEN WHERES MCDONALDS?!" "Uhh...in town, I guess..." Duke replied. Then, out of the bushes, a red fox came. "Hi! I'm Micaela, who are you?" she asked. "Uhh...Duke...so...how'd ya get so lost?" "Well, uhh...first, I was with my buds, and they all had to go to the bathroom...and gave me the map...we were taking the long way to McDonalds..." Micaela explained, showing Duke her map. "What the hell?" Duke said, as he snatched the map, "This is a Travel guide to Canada!" "I-it is?" Micaela sighed, "Well, I was wondering where my wrong turn at Albuquerque was!" 


End file.
